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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26096065">Shift</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/DevilchildMalk/pseuds/DevilchildMalk'>DevilchildMalk</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>SMPEarth, Technoblade - Fandom</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Blood, Dysfunctional Family, Found Family, Gen, Gore, Minor Character Death, Nightmares, Panic Attacks, dystopian au</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 04:55:58</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,582</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26096065</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/DevilchildMalk/pseuds/DevilchildMalk</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Dave shivered. His hands were clammy and his body was tense. The dream never got to the point where the monster, or whatever it is, killed him. He tried calming down, but it seemed like the monstrosity in his dreams was hiding in every shadow.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>No Romantic Relationship(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>106</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Dream</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Dave was running. Where he was going and what he was running for, he didn't know. Was he being chased? Or was he the one chasing after something? All of these questions couldn't be answered, not now.  </p><p>He realized that he was running through a forest after dodging a few branches and roots. Though he wished that he had infinite stamina, that wasn't the case. He'd have to stop soon or he'd risk exploding his heart. Despite this, he kept running.  </p><p>A scream ripped itself from his throat as he accidentally tripped over a root, spraining his ankle. Dave took huge, painful breaths as he tried getting up. He stopped, however, when he heard something behind him. Ignoring his ankle, Dave grit his teeth and tried crawling away. Another panicked scream came from his throat as he was grabbed by his uninjured ankle.  </p><p>Dave turned around and paled once he saw his attacker.  He was face to face with a shadowy figure. Their entire being was pure black, with no facial features to suggest that they were even remotely human. Their grip on his ankle was freezing cold, but instead of numbing his pain, his pain seemed to get worse. Tears blurred Dave's vision as the pain grew unbearable. </p><p>Then, suddenly, the figure's face split into a mortifyingly unnatural smile. A smile that shouldn't be on their face, that shouldn't be possible. Dave was caught off guard as the figure threw him into a tree. The air was blasted from his lungs and he found that he shouldn't draw a full breath. The figure stared at him from a short distance, the smile wiped off their face. Dave's ankle yelled at him as he tried standing up.  </p><p>The figure started moving towards him, and Dave struggled harder to get up. Sadly, his attempts were in vain. He glared at the shadow as it reached him. They reached out to him, and Dave panicked more and more.  </p><p>"Your friends and family are in danger." The shadow said, speaking without moving their mouth. Their voice was whispery, inhuman, and void of emotion.  </p><p>That same unsettling smile came back to the figure's face.  </p><p>"And it's all your fault."  </p><p>Dave screamed as the shadow touched his forehead, pain splitting his head in half. Uncontrollable tears fell down his face as the pain grew excruciating. His arms seemed to stop working at some point since he couldn't move them to protect himself.  </p><p>The figure suddenly let go of him, and Dave immediately grabbed his forehead. His breaths came out as nothing but short, quick gasps as he tried recovering from the pain. He looked at the shadow nervously, afraid that they'd make the pain come back. After realizing that the figure wasn't paying attention to him anymore, Dave thought about crawling away.  </p><p>"Don't move." The figure warned. Somehow, they knew what Dave was thinking.  </p><p>Dave didn't move, knowing that he was a dead man if he did. The figure was staring at something behind him. A shout nearly left his lips as the monster in front of him suddenly caught on fire. Their shrieks of agony would haunt Dave for the rest of his days.  </p><p>Forgetting his ankle, he shot up off the ground and ran. Fear coursed through his veins as he bolted through the woods. He ran faster than ever before, refusing to stop to catch his breath. His chest was a maze of agony and his legs were begging for a break. But he didn't stop.  </p><p>Dave ran faster and faster and faster until he felt something explode in his chest. He fell down to the ground and was sure that he'd die within seconds. Only, he didn't die instantly like he thought he would. It was as if time slowed down just to stretch his death out. The edge of his vision began to fade and blood leaked out of his mouth.  </p><p>He groaned in pain and hoped that this would all be over soon. Dave winced as a bright light assaulted his eyes.  </p><p>Something, or someone, touched his face and his pain disappeared. The steady beat of his heart came back and his ankle no longer hurt. Dave blinked slowly and found that the bright light prevented him from seeing whatever healed him. He realized that the stranger was talking to him after a few seconds of wondering what that sound was. For some reason, they sounded far away.  </p><p>"Dave... Have to... I'm sorry..."  </p><p>Dave strained his ears, but their voice still sounded too far away. Eventually, he just gave up and thought about what he heard. What were they sorry for? What did they have to do? How did they know his name?  </p><p>His questions couldn't be answered, as he suddenly got an intense headache. Dave couldn't tell if he was screaming or not. The pain in his head felt like it was going to split his head in half, just like what the shadow figure did to him earlier, but suddenly the pain was completely replaced by nothing but a huge sense of calm. Darkness began to cover up the brightness and he felt his heart slowing down once again. <br/>- <br/>Dave woke up with a start. His hand flew to where his heart was. When he felt the familiar beat against his palm, he let out a sigh of relief. The sun shined down on him, greeting him with its warmth. Slowly, bits and pieces of what the nice stranger told him began to come to him. Dave groaned and rubbed his forehead.  </p><p>They said something about abilities, or was it something else? He couldn't remember. In a matter of seconds, all the information that was just at his fingertips disappeared. And just as he thought his day couldn't get any worse, flashbacks of his disturbingly realistic nightmare began to play in his mind.  </p><p>It wasn't like he hadn't had this dream before, it's been haunting him for months now, but it was never that realistic. It also lasted far longer than usual. A jolt of fear rippled through his body as another flashback showed up. At least it wasn't a partial flashback. The feeling of the splitting headache would tear him apart.  </p><p>Dave shivered. His hands were clammy and his body was tense. The dream never got to the point where the monster, or whatever it is, killed him. He tried calming down, but it seemed like the monstrosity in his dreams was hiding in every shadow.  </p><p>One particular shadow, which just so happened to be his own, seemed to grow. But he knew that was just his paranoia talking. Shadows don't grow, he doesn't have superhuman powers, and his friends were fine.  </p><p>Then, the shadow turned to look right at him.  He blinked. The shadow seemed closer than before, causing him to break out into a cold sweat. He blinked multiple times.  </p><p>Eventually, the shadow went back to normal.  </p><p>Dave sat in bed, as still as a statue. The feeling of uncontrollable fear still had him in its grip, but he knew that he was safe. After reassuring himself that everything was alright a few times, Dave shook his head. He was losing his mind over one little nightmare.  </p><p>Dave rolled over to get closer to the window.  He basked in the sunlight, enjoying the heat. After the insanity that was his dream, the familiar feeling of being at home was a blessing. The ribbons of sunlight caressed him and hugged him tightly. His eyelids began to feel heavy as the peaceful feeling consumed him. Unfortunately, the serenity didn't last for long.  </p><p>Dave groaned as his phone began to ring.  Reluctantly, he picked up without bothering to see who it was. If he's lucky, it'll be Wilbur or Schlatt. If he's unlucky, it could be somebody else, like Skeppy.  </p><p>"Hello?" Dave asked groggily. He blinked in surprise at how much deeper his voice was in the morning.</p><p>"Hey, Technoblade!" Said a familiar voice. A small chorus of laughter and a larger chorus of shushes followed shortly afterward.  </p><p>"Oh. Hey, Schlatt." He grumbled, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he swung his legs over the side of his bed. Dave stretched and yawned loudly.</p><p>Another round of giggles came through his phone and Dave started to get suspicious. That sound usually brought trouble with it, and he wasn't in the mood to deal with trouble today.  </p><p>"So, Technoblade, what are you doing right now?" Schlatt asked, totally not suspiciously.  </p><p>Instead of answering his question, Dave checked the date. His heart skipped a beat as he realized he saw the date. A feeling of dread twisted his insides as he thought about how dirty his apartment must be right now. How could he forget that his friends were supposed to come over to his house today?  </p><p>"Don't tell me you're all outside my door right now."  </p><p>Everyone on the other side of his phone burst into laughter. Dave opened his curtains and groaned as he saw his friends waving up at him. He checked the time and saw that he'd been napping for three hours. In a panic, he asked them how long they'd been standing out there.  </p><p>Wilbur apparently took Schlatt's phone, as his voice came through instead of the business man's.  "We've been standing out here for a few minutes, when are you going to open the door for us?"  Dave sighed in relief and quickly jumped out of bed. He quickly put some slippers on and rushed to the door. A yelp ripped itself from his throat as he nearly falls down the stairs, accidentally knocking over a vase. His eyes squeezed shut as he waited for the sound of shattering glass to fill the room. After a few seconds, Dave opened his eyes in confusion.  A chill ran down his spine as he saw the vase, which was now floating in mid-air. All Dave could do was stare in petrified horror. He flinched as the vase shattered against the ground, he lost his train of thought. A knock pulled him out of his frozen state.  "Techno? You okay in there?" It was from Phil. He sounded worried.  Dave quickly opened the door for his friends. They all stared at him while he tried rubbing the sleep from his eyes. Their staring earned them a glare in return, successfully snapping them out of it.  "What's so interesting about my face?" Dave asked, deadpan as always.  Schlatt smiled guiltily. "It's just, you look just as dead as you sound."  The taller's eye twitched in annoyance. His friends quickly made up a million different excuses, many of which he'd already heard of before. Deciding to be cruel, Dave let them try to explain themselves for a while. After they ran out of excuses, he stared them down.  Dave huffed. "Just... Forget it. Welcome to my house, nerds."  He opened the door for his friends and winced as they pointed out the broken vase. For a second, he forgot about that. After muttering an apology, he quickly went to clean up the mess. His anxiety slowly began to increase as they looked around his living room. Dave's anxiety spiked when Schlatt began to explore his house.  "Where's your bathroom." The businessman questioned while opening random doors.  Dave watched him warily. "Uh, go all the way down the hallway then turn left."  Dave hoped that they didn't notice how nervous he sounded, but they did anyway. He nearly broke out into a cold sweat as everyone looked at him. Schlatt raised his brow curiously, a mischievous smirk plastered on his face.  "Why're you so nervous? You're acting like you're hiding a dead body 'round here, or something."  Though it wasn't his fault, Dave felt like slapping himself for getting even more nervous. In reality, he was just nervous they'd find his room, which wasn't that far away from Schlatt. It wasn't dirty or anything, its just that it was still decorated like a nine-year-old girl's room. He didn't have any time to renovate his room, which used to belong to his little sisters, after his family moved out. Dave wasn't exactly sure on how'd they react to his room looking like every stereotypical little girls dream, but he was sure that they wouldn't react well.  His friends gave him a look.  "You're not actually hiding a body somewhere, are you?"  "No!"  Phil's eyes widened. "Oh my god."  Dave went red in the face. "I'm not hiding any dead bodies."  "Knowing you, I wouldn't be surprised if you were." Wilbur said with a shrug.  In the middle of all the chaos, Dave realized that Schlatt had left. He sighed and sat down on his couch. Wilbur and Phil joined him. They all talked about many different unimportant things until Schlatt got back. Dave sat in silence and listened to the other's conversation.  He fought with himself on whether or not he should tell his friends about the vase incident, or at least his strange, reoccurring nightmare. No, his friends wouldn't believe the vase incident. And his nightmare would cause them to worry. How hard could hiding his secret be, anyways? Sure, his nightmares sometimes gave him panic attacks, but he hasn't had one for a few days.  Dave was forced out of his monologue when Phil nudged him.  "Techno, we've been trying to get your attention for a while."  "Oh, sorry."  Their conversation continued until the topic of room arrangements. Dave made the mistake of telling his friends that they could choose whatever spare room he had. Schlatt took the room next to his, Wilbur took the room near the bathroom, and Phil took the room next to Schlatt's. At first, he didn't see his mistake. But he soon would.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Shake</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Dave looked around his room in a daze.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Warnings: Long note at the end, Potatoes</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>He was confused. Well, okay, he’s been confused a lot lately, but this is different. A glance upwards confirmed that the fan on his ceiling was still moving backward, forward? Floof’s collar was making a lot of noise like it always did when he shook himself but it kept going even after half a minute passed. Where was Floof, anyways?</p>
<p>Dave looked around his room in a daze. Floof wasn’t here. Was he losing his mind? Did he finally break after that same relentless nightmare plagued his mind for so long? He hoped not. He had a potato war to win.</p>
<p>Speaking of potatoes, there was one in his lap. A potato. It was kinda hot and his legs were beginning to hurt from the heat. </p>
<p>Should he eat it? Dave didn’t want to. Who knows where it came from? Plus, it’s all over his fluffy blankets and probably covered in... fluff. A fluffy potato. Hot fluffy potato. Ouch- he should move it now.</p>
<p>He reaches out-<br/>
_</p>
<p>Dave has never been more grateful for his alarm clock screaming in his ear. He doesn't remember what his dream was, which was strange, but he felt off anyways. Wait. Why was it strange for him to not remember his dreams again?</p>
<p>Wild strands of hair fell over his eyes as he tried to clear his thoughts by shaking his head. The sound of a dog collar comes out of nowhere but is gone just as fast. Dave blinked. His hands burned as if they touched something fresh out the oven.</p>
<p>It was early in the morning, but not too early.</p>
<p>Feeling more off-kilter than usual, Dave goes to make breakfast to take his mind off of fever dreams and dog collars.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Sorry for the short chapter, I'm not as into Technoblade and friends as I used to be. I also wanted to try something new. What did I wanna practice? Fever dreams/Crazy dreams. On one hand, I just wanted to try it out for myself, on the other, this is helping me move the story along because I’ve been so focused on writing more that I lose track of what I’m supposed to be adding on. Like I want to write 1800+ words but I don't know how to get to that goal. </p>
<p>Disclaimer: No Techno isn’t sick or anything, I just wanted him to have a seemingly random dream and stress him out a bit. Yes, I am continuing all my not discontinued stories as soon as I get back into the fandom. ”TECHNOBLADE” might just have to die, though.</p>
<p>Criticism is now very welcome, please help idk what I was thinking refusing criticism back like 4 months ago (maybe idk sorry).</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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